Abidal: Returning to football not my objective

Barcelona defender Eric Abidal has made it clear that returning to the pitch is not his top priority for now and he is focussing on his health and family.

The Frenchman is currently working on his recovery after undergoing a live transplant earlier this year, but he has stressed that life is no longer all about football for him.

“Football has been everything. Now, the most important thing for me is to be healthy. The objective is not to get back to playing,” Abidal told France 2.

“We have to see how it goes. There are things I will endure and others I won’t. Family and health are my priorities.

“I had an operation two years ago so I already started to see life differently then. And today, I see it a little more differently every day. There are things that are priorities now that weren’t before.”

The 33-year-old has made well over 100 Liga appearances for Barcelona throughout the past five seasons.